I know this is not the perfect place to rant and write about this…but I think it’s worth a shot asking ppl what they think-mostly because I’m not so sure if this is “the norm” in Ireland/Europe.

I finished the last of my exams on June 1st. It is now June 28th, and NO ONE knows when our results are coming out. My previous experiences in other colleges (in Japan and in the US, we were told IN THE BEGINNING OF THE YEAR when our exam results were coming out; all exam schedules were set down to the very day and hour.)

I come here, and we dont know what time our exams are until two or three weeks before, and we have to wait and wait and wait in dread/shivering excitement after the exams for our results to arrive.

And when they do, you have usually forgotten about them already and don’t even remember the exam itself, so you really dont know what question was your downfall/claim to fame.

I want to ask: is this normal in Ireland/Europe/the UK? Have people had similar experiences in their Universities/Colleges?!

Last week, while surfing YouTube, came across UCD banner ad, was a bit amazed to see UCD advertising on YouTube, mebbe its the right way reach the video watching generation :)) .. but still not so sure about it.

From Neatorama…

Rashers and Eggs is a blog dedicated to reviewing Irish breakfast dishes at various eateries from Dublin, Ireland.

Link.

Recent survey from the Economist Intelligence Unit’s, Worldwide cost of living survey puts Dublin in the 16th position, where a cup of coffee is more expensive than London, NY, Paris :)). Read more HERE. Also, after 14 years of reigning the survey, Tokyo has been replaced by Oslo as the most expensive city to live in the world and the developed western European cities of London, Zürich, Geneva, Paris, Copenhagen, Amsterdam etc etc make up most of the expensive cities in the world.
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From boingboing, A barman at Dublin’s Ryan’s Pub is captured balancing pints of Guinness atop each other in this phonecam series. Three is no problem. Four is a little wet.
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I didn’t give this much thought, until it happened to me. After being here for 6 months and going through travel nightmares :) .. I finally decided its high time to get myself a bike to reduce my commuting time to office (from 50-55 min to 15 min). Before even I bought the bike, there were several big discussion with colleagues about the bikes getting stolen, being vandalized, bikes seats getting stolen, etc etc and I thought, ok how bad can it be, its just a bike.

I got myself a new bike (starting price range, nothing fancy) and its been only 10 days, today morning when i went to the bike shed, the U-Lock was broken, the frame had very obvious signs of breaking and the front tyre lock was all tangled, showing signs they tried to break it, but couldn’t. Finally, they couldn’t steal it, but left it all vandalized and thats inside the apartment complex. Last week, someone totally vandalized a friends bike, with the front tyre smashed n all. Last month, another friends bike seat was stolen, (seat, who want that). I am sure, there are more such stories.

This all has left me wondering, whats wrong?? Is there an under-ground industry for stealing bikes and selling them again, thou who would buy a second-hand new bike, i wudn’t. So whats the deal, I just don’t get it, they are just bikes, 200-300 € range bikes. I have heard of cars getting stolen n all problem in some cities, but bikes at this much frequency that people are actually scared to buy a new bike. And once its stolen, what happens, its not like a registered car, I am sure the police won’t also do anything about it, they would probably say its just a bike.

In Munich (personal experience), the police can stop you and ask for the receipt of the bike to make sure its not a stolen bike. Someone need to address this problem in some way in Dublin. Any comments!!

Last week, with some friends, I decided to check out an Indian Takeaway restaurant called Bombay Pantry on Clonskeagh Road, next to our office, thou’ opens in evenings only.

Having passed it several times in last few months and always smelling wonderful aroma of food from quite a distance, we decided to finally get the taste and kill the suspense of how good it is. The place has very good Indian food indeed and being an Indian, I am a bit hard to please when it comes to Indian food. And I’ll tell you what is best about this place, i think it is the freshness of the spices. One can really taste the different indian spices in the food (and by spice, i don’t mean chillies). They make food in open kitchen and real fresh. Mind you, order in advance, it takes min. of 25-30 minutes for preparation, due to large number of orders.

They do have other branches around city, give it a try if there is one near by, & feel the freshness.

I dont know how many people who read this blog have to do this. But as the proud owner of a student visa, I have to register with the Garda Immigration Bureau to receive a Garda ID card.

Last year they implemented a 100 Euro fee for registering your details with the Garda, and for the issuing of these ID cards. Payable by credit card, or bank draft.

Drat.

100 Euros.

That means…I’ll be 300 euros short by the end of my medical education.

Brilliant.

The worst part of is it, I still have to line up at 8.30, get a ticket at 10.30 (If I’m lucky), and finally get a new ID at around 12.30..or 1..again, If I’m lucky….

So..why am I paying the extra 100 euros? It’s been claimed that the extra 100E is for speedy service and increased efficiency, but I’m not seeing it. I’m actually seeing LESS people behind the glass, asking for our paperwork. With 8 service windows, and 2 people working at any given point in time, I would have to say the 100E is probably being used for the 11pm tea and biscuits break the people are having behind those walls…..

Is anyone else just as frustrated with the Garda Immigration Registration system as I am?

More upcoming events… On June 15th, 16th and 17th, Merrion Square Park will be hosting over 120 free shows in the Street Performance World Championship.

Street Performance World Championship

…no longer….

IVEAGH GARDENS has always been my favorite park/garden to go to. St. Stephen’s Green is always so full of people, pigeons (yuck), and there is never a nice patch of grass where you can lie down without hitting someone else’s elbow or jabbing someone else in the waist.

Merrion Square is nice, but the sun doesn’t get to all parts of the park through-out the day.

Iveagh Gardens is perfect; with the fountain, the waterfall, and the complete silence.

Tucked away behind a red brick gate, it’s truly the “Secret Garden” of Dublin.

June 14th to June 17th, different cafes and restaurants are joining together for some outdoor fun in the Iveagh Gardens for the TASTE OF DUBLIN festival.

In a warm summer day like this, the only thing you can do in the country is walk around and enjoy the sun in a park…Ice cream in one hand, book in the other!!